Super Typhoon Ragasa, the 18th and strongest storm of the year, is expected to bring extreme winds and heavy rainfall to China's Hainan Island, officials said Monday.

The storm is forecast to most severely affect northern and western regions of the island from Wednesday to Thursday. In response, the Hainan Maritime Safety Administration has raised its typhoon response to Level II.

The Haikou Transportation and Port and Shipping Administration announced that Xinhai Port, Xiuying Port and Railway South Port will suspend operations starting at 6 pm on Tuesday. The suspension is expected to remain in effect until Thursday evening, depending on the weather conditions. Travelers and drivers were advised to plan ahead and complete crossings early.

According to the Hainan Meteorological Observatory, Ragasa was located about 1,170 kilometers southeast of Zhanjiang, Guangdong province, as of 3 pm on Monday, with maximum sustained winds of 62 meters (203 feet) per second near its center. The storm is moving west-northwest at about 20 km per hour and is likely to make landfall between Shenzhen and Zhanjiang in Guangdong on Wednesday.